BBC fee to pay for superfast broadband

A portion of the BBC licence fee is set to be used to help pay for the construction of high-speed broadband networks in rural areas.

UK Chancellor George Osborne confirmed in the Budget that the Con-Lib government would not implement the former Labour administration's plan for a £6 annual tax on fixed-line telephones to part-finance new broadband infrastructure in rural areas. Instead, the government is preparing to help pay for superfast broadband networks in the countryside by using a portion of the BBC licence fee earmarked for assisting the transition from analog to digital television. The chancellor said the government would "support private broadband investment, including to rural areas, in part with funding from the digital switchover underspend within the TV licence fee." Ministers are willing to consider using some of the BBC's £3.6bn annual licence fee to pay for broadband infrastructure because they are keen to ensure that high-speed networks are not confined to urban areas.